Future Castle Sets?

[DaleDVM]

If TLG wants my money again they will release castle.  I have stopped purchasing in any significant amount until then.  

 

[BrickJagger]

24 minutes ago, DaleDVM said:

If TLG wants my money again they will release castle.  I have stopped purchasing in any significant amount until then.  

 

That makes two of us.

[leafan]

Good to know you're both still reading though. I'm sad to see so many losing hope; but I can't blame you.

@DaleDVM @BrickJagger

[zoth33]

But that shouldn't stop you from being creative and building hopefully.  I find very useful parts and figs from other themes like Ninjago, Star Wars, Marvel, DC, Hidden Side, etc.  I do hope they come out with some castle stuff soon or even pirate would be good.  I think with the release of the Witcher and the upcoming LOTR series that hopefully Lego sees there is still a demand for that type of stuff. 

[Gorilla94]

5 hours ago, zoth33 said:

But that shouldn't stop you from being creative and building hopefully.  I find very useful parts and figs from other themes like Ninjago, Star Wars, Marvel, DC, Hidden Side, etc.  I do hope they come out with some castle stuff soon or even pirate would be good.  I think with the release of the Witcher and the upcoming LOTR series that hopefully Lego sees there is still a demand for that type of stuff. 

I agree on other themes delivering good parts. For example there are pearl dark grey ninjago armour legs just perfectly fitting with the Uruk Hai armor and the Sword mould that came with the Ninjago Movie sets, which makes a decent Orcrist.

Witcher 3 was celebrated even in mainstream media news. Game of Thrones was THE big thing for years world wide now. I can't imagine two other serieses only avaiable by streaming services can give Lego an idea they didn't get until now.

On top of that it is still uncertain how good/successfull both shows will be. Everything i read was terrible until now. It begins with "little" things like Gerald being ugly as hell in the books and looking like a top model in the show. It will be funny if they are true to the books like they said, where most people are disgusted by his appearance. The fact that the Lotr-series tells the adventures of young Aragorn is almost a guarantee, that it will be bad. Tolkien wrote very, very little about that time period and nearly everything ever changed about or added to Tolkien's work by media interpretation was pathetic with very little exceptions like Peter Jackson giving Boromir a death scene with a few final words instead of letting the fellowship just find his corpse. Shadow of war was the worst making a noble legend like Helm Hammerhand without any reason a psycho murdering his own daughter.

Edited December 19, 2019 by Gorilla94

[Aine]

Geralt being a handsome dude is the least of the Netfilx's butchering the story...

[zoth33]

On 12/19/2019 at 12:10 PM, Aine said:

Geralt being a handsome dude is the least of the Netfilx's butchering the story...

Yeah I'm not so worried about that.  Cavil has read the books and plays the games, I think he will do fine.  I'm more worried about the rest of the cast and story line.  But back on topic.  I was just saying that with all the recent interest in fantasy series hopefully lego is seeing this and has something in the pipeline already.  I'm just hoping for something castle soon.  If not I have created my own fantasy world out of lego anyway.  I'm really hoping for different heraldry if they do something.  

[Aine]

4 hours ago, zoth33 said:

Yeah I'm not so worried about that.  Cavil has read the books and plays the games, I think he will do fine.  I'm more worried about the rest of the cast and story line.  But back on topic.  I was just saying that with all the recent interest in fantasy series hopefully lego is seeing this and has something in the pipeline already.  I'm just hoping for something castle soon.  If not I have created my own fantasy world out of lego anyway.  I'm really hoping for different heraldry if they do something.  

Yeah, lets get back on the track!

Lego missed the opportunity for the 35th anniversary of the 1984's novel line of Castle, not to mention the miss of the 40th birthday of the Yellow Castle, and if they don't watch TV/netflix/YT and are completely oblivious to the success of the recent fantasy series, then there's no way to wake them up from their self-imposed stupor. I really think that a DIY approach is the best what we can do, and by this I mean a real customization, including the heraldry and stuff (bardings, torsos, storylines, MOCs/instructions.)
For example prices of printing dropped significantly in past decade, and it's not just about decals anymore, even (semi)professional solutions are available for the common folk. I made some tiny attempts in this direction, but I didn't move any further, mostly coz I'm not having any reliable company around me. But with a price of 100-200 USD for a serie of 100 pad prints, this is not completely out of this world.

What I lack the most (and nope, BW, BF, Alibaba don't help) is weaponry. I know that I'm repeating myself, but seriously, what's so damned impossible about a solid sword molding? There are dozens of totally unreal, oversized, spikes-be-everywhere nonsensical swords that lego produced since the turn of millennia, but not one of them is close enough to be useful for me. From the plethora of hits that BL offers, I found just two swords (Gladius and Sting) that are aesthetically pleasing, but both of them have their downsides. Firstly they are not period-true when it comes to my needs, then they don't have the iconic cruciform form, and they sport the lego logo that ruins them for me: I don't like runic swords. They are also a bit too flexible, and I'd love them to match in colour with old helms, but yeah, enough of that.

Lets not even talk about spears. And axes. And halberds... /rant

Edited December 21, 2019 by Aine

[Chiaroscuro]

You are missing the point here. Yes, there was a TV/streaming show fantasy coming back, but those shows were targeting the adult audience (who pays for that services). Game of Thrones, The Witcher, almost everything released was 18+. I am not just saying Lego wouldn´t use those properties (it won´t anyway) but also that those shows failed to catch the children audience. Children today just don´t play with castles. So there is no demand for Lego to maintain a classic castle line. Of course AFOLs would buy such theme, but that is not where Lego gets the money.

[thetang22]

7 hours ago, Chiaroscuro said:

Children today just don´t play with castles. So there is no demand for Lego to maintain a classic castle line.

LEGO is the largest toy maker in the world.  They have major influence in what kids play with simply by dictating what is offered.

I fully realize that isn’t the only factor...but it does play a part.  If LEGO created a fun Castle line, along with the increasing amount of fantasy content that’s regaining relevance in media these days, it would certainly work in favor of Castle being a theme worth having.

But as long as Lego is unwilling to take a risk on something like that, it’s only going to keep people thinking Castle is irrelevant to LEGO.

[Chiaroscuro]

1 hour ago, thetang22 said:

LEGO is the largest toy maker in the world.  They have major influence in what kids play with simply by dictating what is offered.

I fully realize that isn’t the only factor...but it does play a part.  If LEGO created a fun Castle line, along with the increasing amount of fantasy content that’s regaining relevance in media these days, it would certainly work in favor of Castle being a theme worth having.

But as long as Lego is unwilling to take a risk on something like that, it’s only going to keep people thinking Castle is irrelevant to LEGO.

It is not that simple, otherwise Lego would be sucessful in any theme they make. 

To create a compeling theme today one of the strategies is to create a tie in show. Ninjago is very sucessful. But castle? They created Nexo Knights which is basically their version of Masters of the Universe. It didn´t work.

[leafan]

10 hours ago, Chiaroscuro said:

Children today just don´t play with castles. So there is no demand for Lego to maintain a classic castle line

So sick of hearing this. Being a father, I know that kids enjoy castle themed toys (and not just Lego). My boy, some of his friends... Castle is as popular as it ever was.

Secondly, it is possible to make a theme that mainly sells to adults, alongside their more kid-friendly offerings. The existence of one does not disclude the other.

[Aine]

11 hours ago, Chiaroscuro said:

You are missing the point here. Yes, there was a TV/streaming show fantasy coming back, but those shows were targeting the adult audience (who pays for that services). Game of Thrones, The Witcher, almost everything released was 18+. I am not just saying Lego wouldn´t use those properties (it won´t anyway) but also that those shows failed to catch the children audience. Children today just don´t play with castles. So there is no demand for Lego to maintain a classic castle line. Of course AFOLs would buy such theme, but that is not where Lego gets the money.

This is not about just GoT, Witcher, Vikings, and whatever other show, HP including. Back in 1980's lego made Castle line without any TV and/or movie to prey upon, and I don't know if they had their own show, I'm from East Europe. They could somehow work around the Robin Hood series that coincidentaly came out the same year as Castle, but nobody knows how that show helped in lego marketing.
There's a continuum from child to adult, and we cannot tell if, when, and why does the interest in fantasy or history spark in a person. (Btw, I first read Witcher when I was 13.) They changed the horses just to please the small boys, and it's possible that they could target the 8-12 y/o boys with a new Castle line. Even 12-16 guys could like that. Maybe lego could target the AFOLs even more, idk how many resources they'd need to divert from their more profitable and more easier designs, but this is not a crux of the issue. IF only they'd wanted to make a solid Castle line, it's definitely more than doable.
Speaking of Nexo Knights and its (relative?) failure: I know nothing about the line and the show, but it's a weird mess. Maybe a more classic line could have sold better? Because parents buy the stuff, and they have their own ideas about aesthetics. I'd rather buy a classic Castle set for my children than some of the hideous monstrosities that tlg produced.

@leafan you've beat me to it :-)

Edited December 21, 2019 by Aine

[Grover]

10 hours ago, Chiaroscuro said:

Children today just don´t play with castles. So there is no demand for Lego to maintain a classic castle line. Of course AFOLs would buy such theme, but that is not where Lego gets the money.

I have never seen evidence of this.  If you have a study, please share it.  It is like saying that Nexo Knights wasn't that popular because it's a fusion of space and castle.  Or because it imitated Masters of the Universe. Or because there were too many trans-orange pieces.  I have never seen data on any of these, and I think all of it is speculation.  Nexo lasted longer than I wanted, which would seem to indicate that it did all right, but again, I have not seen any marketing studies of this.

Anecdotally, the children I've been around love the medieval settings best, beating out even Star Wars for toys they wanted.  Not market research, but at least I have seen kids want Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and yes, even generic Castle Lego themes (from a used Lego store).

If I were to speculate, and in fact that is all this is, I suspect that the reason that we haven't seen a generic Lego Castle theme is due to the LotR and HP series recently.  I suspect they do not want to dilute sales from these lines.  I would wager that is also the reason we have not seen classic space lines (dilution of SW sales), although I have not seen any research into that.

As an adult, I love the Castle line and wish it came back.  I am always surprised at the number of profiles on EB here that list Castle as their favorite genre.  Check it out sometime.

[Chiaroscuro]

Well, sorry, it was my anecdotal view. I am a father of two (12 years old boy and 7 years old girl). 

 

While both have been exposed to the medieval theme (even in school, as both participated in castle themed projects), the class of my older son wasn’t much interested in it. While the younger daughter liked the theme. She also like Lego but her interest lays on the Princess line castles.

 

And yes, I believe HP line also a factor, as the theme and sets overlaps with Castle.

[TeriXeri]

I know there's a lot of negativity toward the theme, but Nexo got me back into LEGO. (after 16 years)

Jestro's Lair and Knighton Castle were amazing castle sets, even while the colors weren't the usual greys.

Of course the rest of theme, mostly the vehicles and mechs. 

The "Ultimate" sets were pretty cool for the figures+weapons, and I also did like the various shields + inserts even without the app.

It's too bad year 2 had no Stone Monster castle, but the colossus set was still very large and imposing.

Year 3 (2018) was a weird wave, certainly the furthest removed from Castle compared to the rest of the theme. But the tv show already ended by that time, so the story had to be cut short and I don't even know if the Magazine comic ending was meant to be Canon.

 

That said, as for the next Castle wave, I'd like it to go back to more basic, and actual focus on structures and horses, maybe some catapult or carts or village set.

Edited December 22, 2019 by TeriXeri

[Aine]

Chiaroscuro, the Castle line of old missed the girls-also-exist phenomenon. There could be more of the feminine aspects present, be it princesses, peasant life, animals, elaborate dress/furniture. If you check the old school stuff, and lets narrow it down to the late 1980's, you got very few girls friendly sets: in fact 6023 Maiden's Cart may be the only one. I understand that the foucs of Castle line is well uhm castles, but lego kinda overdone this. There's more to Middle Ages than just warfare. Instead of the throng of pointless minirams and microballistae, there could have been at least few civilian sets. But of course I can only pretend that I know that they'd be successful, and maybe the whole spell of 80's Castle is the military nature of the setting.


edit:

Quote

That said, as for the next Castle wave, I'd like it to go back to more basic, and actual focus on structures and horses, maybe some catapult or carts or village set, but no airplanes or mobile bases.

Yep, I would like to see more animals than just the horses, and no, it's not just about me wanting the goat that badly, but even the pigs, fowl, rabbits would make the castle more alive.

Edited December 22, 2019 by Aine

[The Brick Boss]

@Chiaroscuro I have two nephews who are both into medieval stuff. I'm also a father of four and one of my sons loves medieval themes. Heck, we even have a medieval theme street in our city. Matter of fact, I know a lot of children who are into medieval stuff. So I know that ain't true. 

[TeriXeri]

15 minutes ago, Aine said:

Yep, I would like to see more animals than just the horses, and no, it's not just about me wanting the goat that badly, but even the pigs, fowl, rabbits would make the castle more alive.

True, Nexo Knights actually had a pig as pet, and a chicken meant as food next to a cookpot, but those aspects of the theme were so minor with all the robot-horses and mechs around 

Of course the bright-pink color was mostly meant to be cartoony, unlike other pigs LEGO had made.

Edited December 22, 2019 by TeriXeri

[SteamSewnEmpire]

I know it's stupid, and that castle hasn't really "gone away" so long as people continue to build it. But I was walking down the Lego aisle of my local Fred Meyer (sort of an upscale Walmart from the Pacific Northwest) and just sad to see the shelves so dominated by Star Wars and Super Hero sets. And that's not to say that Star Wars and Super Hero themes don't have their place, or don't deserve to be there - I certainly own plenty myself - but I just terribly miss things like the Woodsmen, and Black Knights, and Wolf Pack, etc.

In a larger sense, I also feel like a lot of the recent themes - Ninjago and Hidden Side are particularly guilty of this - have fallen into the trap of telling kids stories, rather than allowing people buying the product to make up their own minds or create their own universes. It's obvious that random Sith XYZ with his red lightsaber is the "bad guy," but what about your average Woodsman? Was he a freedom fighter, or a cutthroat? That was really up to the child. This ambiguity has really gone out the window with Lego sets across-the-board over the past two decades, and it was SO ESSENTIAL to my development as a little kid that I cannot imagine having grown up without it.

I also miss simpler items that have been phased out - like the pointed helmet of yore:

IMO, while I tended to overlook it a lot at the time, that really was my favorite Castle-themed headware, and I wish it would come back in some more modern silvered colors. It's not that I dislike the newer gear, but it was cool that that particular helmet offered both protection, realistic looks, AND allowed your to display the character's face. There was something almost kingly about it, too - very reminiscent of the armored crowns that so many monarchs wore into battle:

Anyway, I'm just rambling, I know. But I'm very dispirited about the future of traditional lines like Castle (and Pirates). Couldn't they just lay off the gas pedal slightly with the endless parade of police sets one year and cut us a break?

Edited December 22, 2019 by SteamSewnEmpire

[Aine]

I value and share your opinion on the old school lego's ambiguity. I never thought about it that way, but I'm tempted to say that it made an impact on my imagination and development.
Speaking about the bullet helmet: I'd love to add one another word to what you've said, but you've missed nothing and anything else would be superfluous. I simply love it, I wish they'd return it back.

One and only remark considering the 80's Castle: weaponry was mediocre to awful; ymmv. imho, etc., but I ranted about this every other day, so yeah.

Edited December 24, 2019 by Aine

[Aine]

On animals - they could be far more common. Instead of n-th iteration of Fire Station and the next Police Dept. version 158, lego could make farms, zoo, obviously castle, whatever the idea that wasn't done ad nauseam in every past year. Otoh, lego is a building system, so it's more about bricks than animals, I guess, and I'm not sure how well my ideas would sell. I knw that girls like horses, ponies, and pegasi, but maybe duplo is better suited for this kind of things. Idk. I just miss the animal life in Castle. Stallions weren't the only domesticated animals.

[Roebuck]

7 hours ago, Aine said:

Yep, I would like to see more animals than just the horses, and no, it's not just about me wanting the goat that badly, but even the pigs, fowl, rabbits would make the castle more alive.

To me the castle theme was at its best when Nicholas Groves designed 10193 Medieval Market Village and 7189 Mill Village Raid  A lot of animals, civilians and civilian buildings we never had seen before in the theme! The other sets around that time was also good with a more broad focus that the normal soldier-fraction A fighting B, but unfortunately Lego have not tasked him with making any similar sets in many years

[Aine]

I sifted through the Castle sets on BL and was amazed by the absolute military nature of the theme. It's close to a wargaming mod of lego, rather than a building-and-collectible system. This is especially interesting due to the Lego's play-good policy (although there's nothing bad about playing with soldiers, inho). I'm a bit surprised that this theme was so heavily into warfare and conflict, and that there was never any sizeable portion focused on the non-military aspects of medieval/fantasy life. But I guess it makes sense, as that's what defined and defines the very theme: castles, sieges, battles, conflict, swordsmanship, etc.

[zoth33]

My youngest son loved Nexo Knights.  My oldest son got quite a few of the Nexo Knights stuff too.  My youngest son also love LOTR and the Hobbit.  Both my kids like castle and fantasy things.  My oldest likes the show vikings and knightfall.  There are kids out there that like fantasy and castle like stuff.   I'm not saying they are going to make sets based of GOT or the Witcher.  I would just like to see something castle related.  As to the fact lego only making sets for kids, Lego has made tons of stuff for afol's look at stranger things and 007,  the UCS sets, etc.  I'm just hoping they make something castle or fantasy related soon.   The Harry Potter line has a lot of nice new molds and figs that can easily be used for castle but I would like an official set or line of sets.